Supply and supplement

AS PART OF the December 2005 Pre-Budget Report and in response to the Barker Review on housing supply the Government launched a consultation paper on a new levy on property development to be known as the planning gain supplement — hereinafter referred to as 'the supplement'.

Why and when?

The logic behind this proposal appears to be that because of current constraints in housing supply there is a need to reform the planning system to bring forward more land for development. This in turn — in the Treasury's view — would lead to increased potential for 'unearned gains' from the sale of land for development and the supplement will allow 'the wider community to share more broadly in the development gain …'. Quite how this is to happen is not entirely clear from the consultation document.
The paper makes it clear that the supplement will not be...